My potato plants seem to be shrinking

This has to be a perception thing surely, but my tatie plants look like they're shrinking.

They're healthy enough, and no sign of anything eating them, but while I'm sure they were about a foot tall last week (which is already smaller than I'd expect by now), they look about 8 inches tonight.

They are in my front garden, which is going through hell at the moment, being south facing and sheltered. They're not drooping, but they must be absolutely parched. I pour a full watering can per 2 to 3 plants every evening. The water just instantly vanishes it's that dry.

Am I mad, or can they actually shrink?

 

Well since you ask, I think you are probably mad.

I've never known mine to shrink, but they do kind of fall over a bit.

 

How awfully naughty, @pete

The above ground bits only grow in the early summer and then wither away, that's normal. The growth then happens underground so if you plonk your hand beneath the plant and feel spuds, everything is allright.

 

I've grown spuds hundreds of times. Well maybe not hundreds, but a lot. This batch is unusual in two ways. First the weird observation that they look like they've shrunk. But also that they're usually much bigger and bushier by now.

 

Put a couple of canes with a bit of string just at the top of the plant; you give you a comparison point and then you'll be able to decide; higher or lower.

 

I've come to a logical conclusion that they're not shrinking. I think it's a perception thing.

In my mind, they should be growing at a particular rate. A couple of weeks ago they were about where they should be. Now they should be bigger, but they're not, ergo in my weird covid infested brain, they've gone from where they should be, to smaller than they should be, thus shrunk.

I blame the fuzzy brain effects of the lurgy.

 

Yeah.